Plastic articles, such as preforms for plastic containers, can be formed by various methods including injection molding and compression molding. The molded preforms are subsequently processed, such as by blow molding, into their desired final shape. After the initial molding step, the preforms are preferably promptly removed from the mold tooling in a still somewhat soft and pliable condition, to increase the efficiency and production rate of preforms for each mold. It may be desirably to initially cool the preforms prior to their being formed in a blow molding apparatus to facilitate handling the preforms, and to control the cooling of the preforms and thereby control the physical properties of the preforms prior to being blow molded. Accordingly, challenges are presented in removing the at least somewhat soft preforms from the molding machine and transferring them to a cooling machine at a desired rate and without damaging the preforms. Challenges are also presented in efficiently and effectively cooling the preforms at a desired rate and without damaging the preforms as they are moved through the cooling station.